Abstracts in head & neck surgery

• Publisher: Wiley (John Wiley & Sons)
• Year: 1984
• Weight: 422 KB
• Volume: 7
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0148-6403
• DOI: 10.1002/hed.2890070115

✦ Synopsis

This article from the Departments of Surgery and Pathology at Emory University reviewed the symptomatology of patients presenting with hyperparathyroidism. The authors concentrated on the difficulty of establishing a clear-cut histologic diagnosis of malignancy in tumors of the parathyroid glands. It is their opinion that foci of tumor in the gland capsule and even within vessels may not represent malignancy. Even cellular pleomorphism and mitotic activity are not considered clear-cut signs of malignancy. The most acceptable histologic indicators of malignancy include a fibrous trabecular pattern, uniform cellularity, and blood vessel invasion. It is important to establish surgical evidence of local tissue invasion or evidence of metastatic disease as the most reliable indicators of malignancy.

The authors feel that parathyroid carcinoma may respond to radiation therapy, but surgery is considered the primary modality for definitive management.